BARKSDALE AIR FORCE BASE, La. -- The Mighty Eighth and the Joint Global Strike Operations Center held its first all call under its new commander at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, Sept. 18, 2018.
U.S. Air Force Maj. Gen. James Dawkins Jr., 8th Air Force and J-GSOC commander, reiterated both organizations mission, vision and his expectations as the new commander.
“We provide global strike on demand,” said Dawkins. “We need to be lethal warfighters, excellent at everything we do, and innovative in carrying out our mission.”
Dawkins also discussed the emergence of great power competition and its impact on 8th Air Force and J-GSOC.
It is increasingly clear that Russia and China want to shape a world consistent with their authoritarian model–gaining greater influence over other nations’ economic, diplomatic, and security decisions, said Dawkins.
“While the counter-terrorism fight continues today, we must refocus our warfighting capabilities and training on dealing with long-term strategic threats to our nation. This is especially important considering that our homeland is no longer a sanctuary.”
One of the ways 8th Air Force is meeting that threat is through the new Joint-Global Strike Operations Center said Dawkins. J-GSOC units are involved in combat operations across the globe every day and the center is an important component of Air Force Global Strike Command’s warfighting capability as the air component to USSTRATCOM.
Dawkins also touched on war fighting readiness, resiliency and the importance of taking care of the team’s warfighter’s and their families.
“This is a warfighting organization that must be ready to fight at a moment’s notice. I need each of you to take ownership of your personal readiness and I need supervisors and unit commander’s to own their team’s readiness. This is a winning combination and one that will posture us for success on night one of any conflict.
Dawkins also touched upon the importance of resiliency for both the military members and their families, saying “we recruit the member, but retain the family” and that he would continue looking for ways to ensure an appropriate work-life balance.
Dawkins finished with words of appreciation for the people who make the mission happen every day.
I sincerely appreciate everything you all do for this organization and the sacrifices you make to ensure mission accomplishment.”